I sincerely hope you can help me. My Neston lawyer is informing me me that he has toorder Neston conveyancing searches stemming from the fact thatthe firm are on the Nat Westapproved lawyer panel. Do I not have a choice here?

You have limited options available to you. As you are taking a home loan with a mortgage company your property lawyer has to comply with their conditions as set out in their version of the CML Conveyancing Handbook. Your lawyer would have previously signed the Terms and Conditions of your bank’s conveyancing panel appointment which obliges them to follow the CML Handbook conditions . Even if you were a cash buyer you would be ill advised not to carry out Neston conveyancing searches.

We wanted to use a conveyancing solicitor in Neston for our home move. Our broker has since notified us that our bank The Royal Bank of Scotland won't deal with them. Surely this is unduly restrictive?

Pre- 2008 most banks had a different appetite for risk. Almost all Neston conveyancing firms would have been on most bank panels. The Financial Services Authority in 2010 completed a thematic investigation into mortgage fraud which concluded: mortgage lenders should know the conveyancing solicitors dealt with. Consequently, mortgage companies have regularly sought more data from law firms regarding their operations and the individuals who work for them as well as set certain criteria such a completing on a minimum number of transactions. Many Neston conveyancing firms that have been excluded from lender panels have a 100% healthy track record, no complaints and no claims and didn't just 'dabble' in conveyancing. Neston is one of the hundreds of locations where the solicitors showing on our search results are on the panel for The Royal Bank of Scotland.

We are getting a further advance on our home loan from Kent Reliance as we want to conduct improvements to our property in Neston. Do we need to select a bricks and mortar Neston solicitor on the Kent Reliance conveyancing panel to deal with the legals?

Kent Reliance don't usually require firms on their conveyancing panel to deal with such a matter. If they do require any legal work then you would need to ensure that such a lawyer was on the Kent Reliance panel.

The formalities of my remortgage has taken place for my property in Neston. Conveyancing was satisfactory but I would like to complain about the lender. How does one go about formally complaining?

All lenders have complaints procedures. Your first point of contact should be one of the lender’s branches or the Customer Care Department at head office. Ordinarily complaints to a lender are sorted out effectively and efficiently. However if you are not satisfied that the matter is not resolved you can write to Financial Ombudsman Service who will take matters further.

I am selling my flat. I had a double glazing fitted in February 2010, but did not receive a FENSA certificate or Building Regulation Certificate. My buyer's mortgage company, Barclays are being difficult. The Neston solicitor who is on the Barclays conveyancing panel is saying indemnity insurance will be fine but Barclays are insisting on a building regulation certificate. Why do Barclays have a conveyancing panel if they don't accept advice from them?

It is probably the case that Barclays have referred the matter to their valuer. The reason why Barclays may not want to accept indemnity insurance is because it does not give them any reassurance that the double glazing was correctly and safely installed. The indemnity insurance merely protects against enforcement action which is very unlikely anyway.

I am close to exchanging contracts on the sale of our house in Neston and the buyers lawyers are claiming that there is a possibility that the property was constructed land that was not decontaminated. A local conveyancer would know that there is no such problem. For the life of me I don't know why the purchasers are using an internet conveyancing outfit rather than a conveyancing solicitor in Neston. Having lived in Neston for three years we know that this is a non issue. Is it a good idea to contact our local Authority to get confirmation that the buyers are looking for.

It sounds as though you may have a conveyancing firm currently acting for you. What do they say? You must enquire of your lawyer before you do anything. It is very possible that once the local authority has been informed of a potential issue it cannot be insured against (a bit like being diagnosed with a serious illness and then taking out life insurance to cover that same sickness)

I’m about to sell my garden apartment in Neston. Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed, however I have recently had a half-yearly maintenance charge invoice – what should I do?

It best that you clear the maintenance contribution as normal given that all ground rent and service charges will be allotted on completion, so you should recover the relevant percentage by the buyer for the period running from after the completion date to the next payment date. Most managing agents will not acknowledge the buyer until the service charges have been paid and are up to date, so it is important for both buyer and seller for the seller to show that they are up to date. This will smooth the conveyancing process.

I am the registered owner of a basement flat in Neston, conveyancing formalities finalised March 2001. Can you let me have an estimate of the premium that my landlord can legally expect in return for granting a renewal of my lease? Equivalent properties in Neston with over 90 years remaining are worth £181,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £55 invoiced annually. The lease expires on 21st October 2074

You have 50 years unexpired the likely cost is going to range between £32,300 and £37,400 as well as legals.

The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to supply the actual costs in the absence of comprehensive due diligence. You should not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt other concerns that need to be considered and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not move forward placing reliance on this information without first getting professional advice.